Along the Sidelines - Steelers Edition

[Jeremy Igo]

For better or worse.... mainly worse.... here is what my lens found throughout the evening.

 

First of all, for me one of the biggest stories of the game was the fact that the Panthers started two rookies at wide receiver. Cam was sure to greet them in pregame.

 

 

 

Cam continued to welcome other players out of the tunnel. Cam doesn't discriminate against inactive players either. If you come out of that tunnel, expect to be hit. Rookie Andrew Norwell needs to keep his head on a swivel.

 

 

 

Philly Brown was very excited coming out of the tunnel. I spoke with him after the game. He didn't know he was starting until just before introductions. That would explain the huge smile on his face.

 

 

I know some may be down on Philly for his special teams bobble and subsequent fumble, but I remain extremely excited about Philly Brown. Brown ended up grabbing seven catches and 68 yards. Extremely impressive for the undrafted rookie out of Ohio State.

 

 

Kelvin Benjamin led the team in receptions with eight and also posted his first 100+ yard performance. Kelvin's hands are just something I have not seen before in Panthers colors.

 

Look at these two frames.

 

 

 

You might assume that was a dropped ball, but it was in fact a reception. Kelvin got just enough finger tip grip on that ball to haul it in on the sidelines. For me, this was the play of the game.

 

Veteran players are starting to notice Kelvin, and are sure to talk to him after the play. No defensive veteran wants to be shown up by a rookie. Kelvin has never backed down to a trash talking session, but typically replies with a huge smile on his face.

 

 

Cam Newton was under heavy pressure for much of the night, even when the Steelers only brought three down linemen. This is extremely concerning for the season. If Cam Newton continues to take the kind of hits he did last night, he will not make it through the season. The lack of talent on the offensive line was probably the most talked about topic of the offseason. Now we know why. Carolina faces a very similar defense on Sunday, it could get just as ugly.

 

 

Luke Kuechly once again led the team in tackles with seven. The crowd needs to start recognizing that AJ Klein and Luke Kuechly are different people. Whenever Klein makes a tackle, the crowd usually scream LUKE.

 

 

 

Thomas Davis went off the field early in warmups, and I tweeted that he and the head trainer left together. Judging from Davis' performance, it seems his hip was nagging him. He was unable to turn his hips into defenders as well, which was a big part of a few missed tackles resulting in long runs. We need to get Thomas Davis healthy immediately.

 

 

Thomas DeCoud appears to be a serious liability in the run game. He was in on a few run blitzes last night and looked pretty bad. He lacks the aggressiveness and is a liability other teams will hone in on now.

 

 

Antonio Brown got away with a facemask on Bene Benwikere. I thought Benwikere played pretty well for having to cover as long as he did.

 

 

Mario Addison had the only sack on the evening. He is out playing Charles Johnson at the moment, which is terrible news for the Panthers. Johnson has been largely absent this season after having missed most of camp with a hamstring injury.

 

 

Greg Olsen is not talked about enough. His TD was one of the only bright spots of the evening. Greg continues to put together what I feel should be a pro bowl season for him.

 

 

Notice his right foot hitting the inside of the end zone pylon. It is this attention to detail that makes him a complete player.

 

 

Panthers fans stuck with it for most of the game. But when the clock read....

 

 

This was the scene all around the stadium.

 

 

The result was the Steelers being treated with home game adoration by the Pittsburgh fans, who had by then taken over the stadium.

 

 

But really, I can't blame Panthers fans for leaving a game the Panthers barely decided to show up to.

 

 

I think Ron Rivera summed it up best after the game. "We didn't play a very good football game."

 

 

More images from the game, locker room impressions and Topcat pictures coming today in the All Pro Insiders section. If you enjoy my coverage and want to see more, you should consider signing up at around the same cost of buying the huddle a nice beer a month.

 

 

 

 

[ItsNotGonnaBeAlright]

That facemask picture pisses me off. I know I'm a homer, but it seems like teams are getting away with murder week in and week out against us this year.

[lindseyj14]

That last picture is hilarious, pathetic, & depressing all at the same time.

[Shufdog]

I noticed the crowd chanting Luuuuuke when Klien made a play too. It was somewhat embarrassing!

[Kevin Greene]

ugghh, post traumatic stress disorder.

[KSpan]

DeCoud has always been a poor tackler, and I'm sure the expectation was/is that he would need to do very little in the run game behind that front seven. Definitely not the case last night.

[BigBoss]

Heaven help us.... and Cam. Our o-line is ROUGH.

[Camp Fodder]

Philly excites me as a receiver not a returner

[rscott94]

That facemask picture pisses me off. I know I'm a homer, but it seems like teams are getting away with murder week in and week out against us this year.

We were getting held all night.. We must've had these guys as the refs

[BigBoss]

Oh spare me the ref excuse we were awful last night.

 

 

 

 

Byron Bell sucks.

[chknwing]

I noticed the crowd chanting Luuuuuke when Klien made a play too. It was somewhat embarrassing!

 

its called sitting in the upperdeck effect.

[dldove77]

Other than some missed holding calls - which happens in every game to every team - I thought the officiating was pretty fair. The new ref was clear and concise. Refereeing is the least of our problems. 

 

But really, folks, we weren't going to go undefeated. This team got beat down and hopefully they'll be able to right the ship. Onto next week.

[Paa Langfart]

Thanks for the pics zod 

 

Hard to get too excited today about anything Panther related.

 

and this is embarrassing - fuggin crowd doesnt even know their own players - could hear it plain as hell on tv too

 

 

 

Luke Kuechly once again led the team in tackles with seven. The crowd needs to start recognizing that AJ Klein and Luke Kuechly are different people. Whenever Klein makes a tackle, the crowd usually scream LUKE.

 

[Luuuuuuuuuuke59]

I'm gonna say it... Philly looked outstanding catching the ball last night. Except for that one...